Modular flooring is well-known to provide temporary flooring solutions in outdoor and mobile settings, such as social, sporting and entertainment events, military engagements and research outposts in the field. Various types of modular flooring exist, providing different benefits. Many provide support for pedestrian and/or vehicular traffic thereon, some even for heavy duty loads. These often require extremely durable materials formed into solid tiles, and often require screws, cam bolts, and other fastening hardware to securely connect adjacent tiles to prevent them from coming apart under the heavy load and/or traffic, such as disclosed in United States Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0005430. These fasteners or parts thereof may be lost in transit, leading to problems when it comes to assembling. Moreover, such fasteners require tools to assemble, from screwdrivers, hex bolts, to large dedicated tools, all of which must be transported with the tiles to the site where needed. These tools add to the transportation volume and costs. They are also subject to being lost in transit or between events, making it impossible to assemble or disassemble the tiles.
Some tiles rely on the use of connectors extending from the sides to connect with adjacent tiles. For instance, in U.S. Pat. No. 9,051,739, flooring tiles are disclosed which have connector loops extending from their sides which engage receiver pins for connection. Optional cams for additional connection are also disclosed. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,777,266, male and female connectors are adapted to be latched to complimentary connectors on adjacent tiles to connect tiles to one another. However, these solutions do not permit thermal expansion or contraction which may be needed to accommodate varying temperatures.
Many known modular floor tiles include interior support ribs or walls that provide structural support to the tile. For instance, U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,397,466; 5,922,106; 7,571,573; and 5,787,654 disclose floor tiles having multiple ribs for structural support. However, these ribs form hexagons, honeycomb features, triangles, overlapping grids and the like that define vertices. These ribs are also linear in shape. Some floor tiles, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,756,882, include curves or arches within the tiles. However, these do not provide structural support.
What is still needed in the field, therefore, are modular floor tiles and systems that may be used in applications where high load capacities are needed but which also permit thermal expansion and contraction. Floor tiles that may be lightweight enough to be easily transported and yet are sufficiently strong for high loads is needed. Temporary flooring solutions that do not have loose parts or require tools which may be lost in transit would also be beneficial.